Tag: writing

3 thoughts that stopped me from starting my blog

Anna PengLeave a comment

Before I started publishing my writing, I thought:

  1. I don’t think anybody really wants to read what I have to say (I didn’t have confidence in myself) 
  2. Is this worth my time? (There was no clear cut reward for doing this, except for scratching my own itch)
  3. What happens if what I write isn’t perfect? (My family values academics, so naturally I worked hard in school to write the perfect essays. I was scared to fail)

Now that i’ve been publishing for 3 years, 

  1. I’ve been able to learn about myself through writing my own ideas 
  2. I’m confident that I’m doing this for my own sake, to scratch my own itch
  3. I’ve learned to accept that perfect standards aren’t what I need

If you’re thinking of starting your own blog, or becoming a content creator what are you waiting for? What’s stopping you? 

What do great writers do that differentiates them from the rest?

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Great writers write more than most. 

They practice more than anyone else in the room. 

They have written more bad pieces than you have pieces in general. 

They put in just as many hours as a full time job does. 

It’s the practice, dedication, and time that chalk up to great writing abilities. 

5 reasons you should start a creative habit

Anna PengLeave a comment

All reasons are what I’ve found during or after writing for 1000+ days. 

Stemming from personal experience:

  1. It gives you an excuse to practice and develop a useful skill (in this case, writing)
  2. Creating purely for yourself is brings an unparalleled joy. No strings attached. No bosses to report to. It’s all you.
  3. The barrier of entry for things like writing, drawing, or designing is low. You don’t have to be talented or skilled to begin. All you need is the desire to create. 
  4. It can bring you random opportunities that change your life. It won’t be obvious at the beginning, but I can probably trace some cool things back to my daily writing. Like that time I went viral on LinkedIn (90k impressions on a single post)
  5. You will learn so much about yourself. Your interests will develop. The way you manage your time will change. You will give yourself chances to explore things you constantly used to put on the back burner.

If you could invest $3 in your communication skills a day, would you do it?

Anna PengLeave a comment

I’m not talking about stocks or passive income streams. 

I’m talking about working on yourself and making a commitment.

If you could make a promise to yourself that would make you proud in a year’s time, would you do it?

I’m not talking about making a sudden huge commitment today, right now. 

I’m talking about small, tiny wins that snowball into something much bigger and impactful, overtime. 

The idea is as follows.

I’m thinking of starting a writing community. 

It won’t be free (but it might be $3 a day for x amount of days). 

The details are still being rolled out, but I’d love to hear if anyone wants to join me for the ride.

If you’re anything like me, you’re a sucker for learning alongside great people. 

That’s what The Habit Factory has always been about.

If you want to be a part of the process and hear about the writing workshop when it comes, I’d love for you to sign up for our newsletter here

I hope to see you there. 

Writing not to make a buck, but to scratch a personal itch

Anna PengLeave a comment

Write whatever you want. 

No grades, no requirements, no need for perfect sentence structure.

Passion writing is an art. 

Passion writing is for anybody, if you’re willing to try it. 

What you’ll need: 

  • You
  • An empty document or notebook
  • An idea 
  • 15-20 minutes 

What you can’t bring: 

  • Your FOPO (fear of other people’s opinions) 
  • Your editor (that’s the version of you who thinks too much and keeps backspacing to delete your sentences)

Just write whatever has been on your mind.

Your life will change in 100 days. 

That is, if you do this once every day for 100 days. 

You’ll feel more creative. 

You’ll fine-tune your communication skills. 

You’ll learn how to tame your innermost critic. 

What more can you ask for? 

But, I’m not here to convince you of anything.

Because I did the same thing for 100 days and it worked on me. 

I’m thinking of putting together a writing community with The Habit Factory, but I first want to know who would want to join us. 

If you’re interested, you can sign up to hear updates on our writing community here: https://mailchi.mp/25b1899732fe/writing-workshop

I hope to see you there.

“I want to start writing” 

Anna PengLeave a comment

Here are 2 simple things I did that helped me kickstart my writing journey almost 3 years ago.

  1. Schedule a non-negotiable time and place out of my day to write. Keep it short, up to 30 minutes. Mine is at night, by my desk, right before I head to sleep.
  2. Once your fingers start typing away, DO NOT EDIT. Resist every single urge in your body to use the backspace button until you are done your entire first draft. Works wonders. 

Do these 2 things when you write and you will enjoy the process for the long term.

Writing has helped me improve my communication skills drastically (which is why I’m a huge fan of it and am willing to help others get on board too)

Writing is an art that we can choose to practice

Anna Peng2 Comments

If you write, you’re a writer.

As a writer, I’ve been told that if I’m not getting paid for my work or getting any kind of recognition for it, then I shouldn’t bother writing at all. It shouldn’t be worth my time. But the truth is that writing is one of the best exercises artists do to keep their creativity in check—and if you’re not getting paid for your work, you’re still an artist. 

You don’t need an audience and accolades to be a writer; you just need the desire to express yourself and a way to document your words.